High Fun Potential: 1970 Chevrolet Camaro
We are grateful for Mitchell sending us this 1970 Chevrolet Camaro. It is listed here on craigslist for $6,000 in Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania. The car was originally a 4 speed but someone swapped it out for an automatic transmission. The original front end was apparently swapped for a Rally Sport split bumper front end. The seller is also including another front end with the sale.
The interior is unfinished and rough. The dash is cracked and the car does not have its original steering wheel. The seats are the correct OEM design but have been recovered in cloth. The car is primered and has rust issues. There is rust in the floor pans to the point where you can see daylight. A worse problem is that “the rear frame rails are gone” according to the seller.
The Camaro is equipped with a 350 cubic inch V8 engine that looks to be modified by headers and an aluminum intake manifold. The seller believes that the engine is not original. This is a project car but the seller states that the car runs and drives but needs tuning. The 5.7 liter small block Chevrolet engine should produce good power once it is sorted out.
So the price is good and the rear frame is gone. If someone has the time, parts and ability, this is a classic body style and you could make it into whatever you wanted. Sometimes having a rare car handicaps you because you don’t want to mess with the originality. That is not a problem in this case! How hard is it to replace the rear frame on this F Body?
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Comments
Just FYI, this car doesn’t have the Rally Sport front end, which has round secondary lights and an Enduro grill cap in addition to the split bumpers. It’s a standard front end with the split bumpers added.
Look closer at the photos in the ad. Split bumpers were not added. The center section of the stock bumper was cut out
That makes it even tackier. It’s bad enough when someon bolts RS bumpers to a standard front end, this treatment is even worse.
Steve R
Cool car for the right person. Lotsa lotsa welding to be done, but some people wont mind. A blank slate to make a L78 or Z/28 clone, and it seems most of the right parts are included. I personally think the price is right(ish) considering the RS nose being included. Personally I would look for a drier western example to start from but that’s cause I’m a lousy welder…
Ah, this may be, but it looks like correct ones are included in the sale.
What an abomination. Put a 4 speed back in it, and do a Z/28 clone.
I always hate cars in primer!! So my best suggestion is to bring a magnet!!
Rhett is correct. if you have the money, get an Art Forstman chassis underneath it, with air bags (don’t laugh; you won’t believe the ride)
put a 6 way power driver’s seat in it, these cars have horrible ergonomics,
Vintage air and heat, give the body what it needs and the person who explained the difference in front ends is also correct. You will have a louche sexy ride. Keep it for five years. You’ll love every minute of it. And
it gets more rare as times passes……….
The people doing that sort of build aren’t starting with a POS like this. They are smart enough to start with the nices body their budget will allow, since that’s all they are using.
This car will likely be bought by someone looking to do a budget build.
Steve R
This is a hot rod. Get the body fixed. Build any kind of small block you want big power and $$$$$ or on the cheap. Put the proper 4-speed trans. back where it belongs,. Hot rods have manual trans. not autos. If the only thing that’s important to you is where the split bumper was cut, welded, added on recut whatever then hot rodding is not the hobby for you. But whoever said clean slate; well that’s hot rodding in a nutshell. I own 8 corvettes. They all have F.I. I love smallblocks but the 283 C I is the one I like best. I don’t care about clones or copy’s every person will do stuff a little or a lot different and that’s building a HOT ROD…………………Later…………………….JIMMY. .
Looks better without that nose piece
Think that’s the wrong spoiler for a ’70. Too tall.
Jimmy is right, this is(was) a hot rod Camaro, probably done in the early eighties when I remember a lot of 4 speed cars converted to automatic, small loose converter, shift kit, with the big B&M mega shifter or similar. It was a trend in the eighties I remember well.
No need for another Z/28 or SS clone, if anything clone the ’70 Baldwin/Motion 454 ballistic missile, big tall hood scoop hiding the dual quads all decked out in purplish and black groovy psychedelic paint. Saw it on the cover of and old high performance Cars magazine cover. Nobody will know what it is anyways so the cloning factor will be nill.
Got a feeling the next owner will stall out before it hits the road and it’ll wind up being a clone of a wrecking yard junker. Ha ha!